The inspired coffee drinker knows that all coffees are not the same. Apart from the bean, the method of extraction of coffee also determines the nutritional value, aroma, texture, and content of your coffee brew. The Jamaican coffee beans are the ones you need to spruce up your day. The equipment you need is determined by the method you want to use. We will examine 3 methods; the pour-over method, the French Press, and the drip coffee makers. Now let us create our coffee preparation checklist for each method.

THE POUR-OVER METHOD:

This method involves pouring hot water over coffee grounds in a filter. This method is sometimes referred to as manual brewing because the water is poured by hand onto the coffee. The pour-over method is an infusion method that is great for single-origin coffee like our Jamaican blue mountain coffee beans. The advantage here is that it extracts high-quality flavors from the beans. You are also able to control the temperature of your brew.

Equipment:

• • A brewer: The Chemex, Hario V60 or the Melitta coffee maker are great for this method.

• • A Filter: You can use a paper or cloth filter. Some brewers have specific filters; this will guide you when choosing your filter.

• • Kitchen scale: This is to weigh your ingredients. A better measure will give better and easily reproducible excellent-tasting coffee.

• • Kettle: There are kettles made specifically for pour-over. They have a long spout, which is necessary to control the flow of water and to keep water at a stable temperature for consistent extraction. If you do not have this, you can use your regular kettle, although you have to be extra careful when using this.

• • Grinder: This is to grind your beans to the required size. Freshly ground beans always yield better results.

Brewing Technique:

• • Choose the coffee-to-water ratio that best suits you. There are several suggested ratios 1:16, which is 1 part of coffee to 16 parts of water with a standard range of 1:15 to 1:18. The water to coffee ratio will determine the strength of your coffee. 

• • Grind your Jamaican Blue Mountain coffee to the fineness of brown sugar. This is approximately Medium Grind. The degree of finesse determines the rate at which the coffee is extracted.

• • Heat water to about 201^OF (93^OC), or boil it and cool for a few minutes before use. Do not use boiling water because it will burn the beans and make your coffee bitter.

• • Wet the filter with the boiled water to remove the paper taste and ensure even temperature all around.

• • Pour the water onto the grounds on the filter, enough to wet the grounds. This action will cause a release of gases, termed blooming, which lasts about 30- 45 seconds. Blooming is a test of the freshness of your beans.

• • Pour more water in concentric circles avoiding the sides of the filter, so the water does not run down the sides. 

• • Wait till the drip rate reduces to almost the last few drops, then remove the filter and dispose of the sludge.

THE FRENCH PRESS METHOD:

Also called the press pot or coffee plunger, a French press is a device consisting of a narrow glass or plastic beaker, with a metal or plastic lid and a tightly fitted plunger. The French press uses an immersion brewing technique in which the coffee beans are submerged in water and extracted. Here, the coffee beans come in contact with only the French Press and hot water yielding a cup of coffee, which is heavy-bodied and robust with some sludge at the bottom of your cup.

Equipment:

•  

  • A French press

• • A kitchen scale

• • A Kettle: Any kettle will be ok as it is basically for boiling the total volume of water needed

• • A Grinder

• • A spoon

Brewing Technique:

•  

  • Choose the coffee-to-water ratio that best suits you, and weigh your beans and water. For instance 45g of coffee in 90g of water

• • Heat your water to between 93 – 96 °C (199 – 205 °F)

• • Pour some water into the French press to preheat it for better temperature regulation during the extraction process and empty it just before adding the beans

• • Grind the pure Jamaican Blue Mountain coffee to medium coarse. A French press works better with coffee of a coarser grind because a finer grind is less porous and will make it more challenging to plunge.

• • Pour the grounds into the French press and add all the water needed. Stir with a spoon

• • Wait for 4-5 minutes and then press down your plunger. The plunger pushes down the beans and allows the more transparent fluid to rise, which is your coffee extract.

The Drip Coffee Maker:

These come as automatic coffee makers that you can preload with your Jamaican blue mountain coffee, water, and then program to yield coffee at the ratio you want. These are equally pretty good as they save you time and energy. 

There you have it, your coffee preparation checklist for making great coffee, but remember, to achieve that premium taste, you need to buy and use pure Jamaican Blue Mountain coffee. Let’s start brewing.